The Laauwe application Ser. No. 789,189, filed Apr. 20, 1977, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,122,979, issued Oct. 31, 1978, discloses a concept that is new to the squeeze bottle and aerosol arts.
Briefly stated, that concept is that a squeeze bottle containing a liquid product, such as an anti-perspirant and the like, has a dispensing nozzle internally forming a swirl chamber having opposed orifices each having its own inlet. One inlet is connected with a dip tube that dips into the liquid when the bottle is upright, and the other inlet connects with an air space above the liquid when the bottle is upright. When the bottle is squeezed, the swirl chamber receives opposed jets of the liquid and air, producing an atomized spray.
Surprisingly, that concept permits a squeeze bottle via only inherently low-pressure air and product provided by squeezing of the bottle, to eject as good, if not better, an aerosol as can be provided by any known aerosol or pump-type spray dispensing package, either of which via liquified gas propellant or a finger-powered piston area of minute dimensions, provide much higher ejection pressures. An obvious advantage is that a squeeze bottle package is much less expensive to produce than an aerosol package with its rigid container, liquified gas content and dispensing valve; or the pump-type package with its complicated and, therefore, expensive pump.
In his application Laauwe discloses a nozzle construction by which the aerosol is discharged axially with respect to the bottle axis. Many liquid products used in aerosol form require the aerosol spray to be discharged other than in a vertical direction. An anti-perspirant is an example.
Therefore, in his application Laauwe discloses the use of a throttling valve for the air intake of the nozzle with a normal dip tube dipping into the liquid product and providing the liquid spray, keeping in mind that the air and liquid are fed to the swirl chamber each individually via the swirl chamber's interspaced and individual injection orifices. This valve permits the squeeze bottle to be used other than upright and even when upside down, because when upside down, it is the dip tube feeding the air while what was formerly the air feed becomes the liquid feed, the throttling valve being gravity actuated to at that time exert a throttle action preventing overfeeding of the liquid relative to the air. Even with this valve arrangement the Laauwe squeeze bottle package is the least expensive of any of the packages capable of producing an aerosol with the characteristics the public has learned to demand via the aerosol package or so-called aerosol can which is being phased out to a substantial extent because of its alleged polluting or flammable spray characteristics.
It has been found desirable to provide the Laauwe squeeze bottle with a right-angle spray nozzle by which is meant a nozzle that can eject the aerosol spray, characteristic of the Laauwe concept, transversely with respect to the axis of the bottle, a right angle ejection being presently preferred because it appears to be most acceptable to the public used to the right-angle spray from the old familiar aerosol can. Such a nozzle would eliminate the need for a gravity-operated valve or other expedients when an aerosol spray in a generally horizontal direction is desirable, because the bottle would not have to be tilted to any great degree for that purpose.
The prior art does disclose examples of nozzles providing for a squeeze bottle right-angle spray, but these do not appear to be adaptable to the Laauwe concept while adhering to the demands for simplicity, low cost and reliability required in the case of squeeze bottles intended for production by the millions.
For example, the old 1929 Leong U.S. Pat. No. 1,716,525 discloses a relatively simple, although valved, right angle spray nozzle for a squeeze bottle. However, this operates on the old principle of discharging the air pressurized by bottle squeezing, at right angles over the stream of the liquid ejected by the same pressurization, relying on shear exerted on the liquid by the resulting air jet to produce an atomized spray. Such a spray does not approach the extremely small particle size characteristic of an aerosol which the public has learned to demand.
A more recent example is the Shay et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,020,979, May 3, 1977, showing a squeeze bottle with right-angle nozzle used in conjunction with a swirl chamber for the discharge orifice. However, here again the principle of atomization is the same as that of the old Leong patent, the ejection of air in swirl form right angularly across the liquid feed allegedly providing increased shear and, therefore, a fine mist spray. Using this old atomization principle, the right angle nozzle designing of a commercially producible nozzle is not unduly complicated.
The object of the present invention is to provide a right angle nozzle for a squeeze bottle and which has the advantages of the previously described Laauwe concept and, in addition, all of the other requirements for a squeeze bottle right angle nozzle that must be produced in quantities of millions in a commercially satisfactory manner.